Jealous Little Junior
by langstonlover
Summary: After both of them have divorced their wives and have gotten custody of their children, Jack and Ennis marry and move to Lightning Flat with Jack's mother. It's here, three years after their marriage that Jack conceives their first child. Everyone seems thrilled by the news, except for Alma Junior who doesn't seem very fond of the idea of a new baby


"Hop in, girls." Ennis told his daughters. Alma Jr. and Jenny climbed into Ennis's truck while their mother looked on from the front door of their house, a sour look on her face as she glared at Ennis. "I don't see why the judge let you take them!" She snapped, still outraged that Ennis had been given custody of the girls three years ago, even though she had run off on them and hadn't been planning on coming back. "Let's not fight around the girls, Alma." Ennis reminded her, his tone serious, almost warning her to shut up. Alma glared at him hatefully and then slammed the door shut. Ennis just mumbled something under his breath about Alma being an unreasonable bitch before climbing into the drivers seat of his truck and taking off down the road, heading for Lightning Flat. The girls were quiet for awhile. They were used to their daddy never talking, so this is the way their car rides with him usually went. But Ennis had changed a lot within the last year. He was happier since he and Jack had finally married and bought a place together. As a result he'd been a lot more talkative lately. He looked over at his girls and smiled as he used his free hand to pull a picture from Jack's last ultrasound out of his wallet. "He looks a lot more like a baby now than he did in the last one, huh?." He asked, smiling as he handed the ultrasound picture to Jenny for her and Junior to look at. "Yeah. Last time he looked like some kind of alien." Jenny said, giggling. Junior just nodded and kept quiet as she handed the picture back to Ennis. "Yep, He's sure grown alright." Ennis said, fitting the picture back into his wallet while trying to drive at the same time. "Doc says he should be here within' the next couple of weeks." Jenny smiled. "I hope he comes 'fore school starts." She said, excitedly. Again, Junior just nodded and continued to sit silently. "Don't worry sweetheart." Ennis said to Jenny. "I know Doc said it'll probably be at least a week but I doubt it'll be that long. I give it three days, maybe four at most."

"Yay!" Jenny said smiling. Junior continued to stay silent as she looked out the window of the truck. Ennis glanced at her. "You okay, Junior?" He asked. "You ain't said a word since we left Riverton." Junior looked back at her father. "I'm fine, Daddy." She told him. "Just tired." Ennis nodded and turned his head forward again. He tried not to show it but he was a bit worried. Usually his seven year old was always so excited to get to talk with him again, after spending so much time away from him, but for some reason today she just didn't seem to want to talk at all. "Daddy?" Jenny asked suddenly, awakening Ennis from his daze. "Huh?" Ennis asked. "Do you know if it's a boy baby or a girl baby yet?" Jenny asked hopefully. Ennis grinned and the worry over Junior was pushed out if his mind for a moment. "No, darlin', we're wantin' it to be a surprise still." He told Jenny. "We're pretty sure it's a boy though." Jenny gave him a confused look. "How do ya know that?" She asked. Ennis chuckled. "Cause there ain't no way a girl baby could kick as hard as he does." Jenny laughed, and Ennis smiled and ruffled her hair, before taking a glance over at Junior, who was still just sitting there, leaning back against the seat, not saying a word.

...

"Whatcha doin' there, Bobby?" Jack asked his four year old son as he watched him dump a pile of crayons out on the floor. "Colorin'." Bobby replied as he opened up his coloring book and started filling in a page with his crayons. Jack smiled as he glanced back at the TV and the football game he was watching. He felt so blessed to have been given custody of Bobby when he divorced Lureen. Of course he hadn't expected the judge to give him to Lureen anyway. That woman was simply not a good mother, and everyone had known it, including Lureen herself. Jack actually had started to suspect that Lureen hadn't even wanted custody of Bobby when the divorce was finalized.

That had been three years ago, when Bobby was only about eight months old. Jack and Ennis had married shortly after that, and since Bobby didn't see Lureen anymore and he hadn't been old enough to really remember her when she and Jack got divorced, Bobby saw Ennis as his other parent. He even started calling him Da Da when he first started talking. Ennis loved that Bobby thought he was actually his father, and he'd wished that Jenny would've been able to think the same about Jack, but of course, Alma had to go and screw everything up, just like she did with everything else in his life. But still both Junior and Jenny had come to love Jack like a daddy, which Ennis had been thrilled about.

Their first three years of marriage had been filled with obstacles. The first of which had happened before Ennis had even proposed to Jack. Once they'd been reunited after four years, and they were on their way home from their little fishing trip, they'd returned to Ennis's home I Riverton to find that Alma had taken off, and left the girls at the apartment where Don Wroe's wife had found them later the next morning. "She just took off and left the poor little darlin's here." Mrs. Wroe had said. "Stormed right out the door in the middle of the night and left the poor things sleepin' in their beds. They was both bawlin' and screamin' fer their mama when I got here. Bless their little hearts they was both so scared. That woman weren't ever fit to be a mama if ya ask me" Ennis had been angrier than Jack had ever seen him. "How could she!?" He'd yelled. "How could she just take off and leave 'em here all by theirselves!? Hell both of 'em are still just babies! They coulda got hurt or worse!"

"Ennis, calm down." Jack had said. "I know it was awful of Alma to run off on the girls like she did but it's done with now, and we can't do nothin' to change it. Let's just thank god that Mrs. Wroe was here for the girls and that they're both alright." As he was speaking he'd caressed Ennis's face with his hand, in an attempt to calm him down. Ennis's angry growls had reduced to just frustrated grunts every once in awhile, as he glanced over at his two baby girls who were now sleeping safe and sound in their beds, and then looked back at Jack. "I can't trust Alma alone with them." He'd mumbled. "Not no more." Jack had frowned and lowered his eyes to the floor, thinking that Ennis wasn't going to want to see him anymore, and would rather stay at home to keep an eye on his kids since Alma was clearly a very irresponsible mother, but to his surprise Ennis had cupped a hand to his face and lifted it back up so that Jack was looking at him. "Reckon the girls need parents that won't run off on 'em like that." Jack gave him a hopeful look. "I can't raise 'em by myself. And Alma ain't gonna be seein' 'em anytime soon if I've got anything to say about it so I'm gonna need some help with 'em." "What're ya tryin' to say Ennis?" Jack had asked. "I'm sayin' I want you to raise my girls with me." Ennis had told him. "I wanna take you and the girls and find a place somewhere out where folks'll leave us in peace. That sweet life you talked about, I want it to be like that. I wanna be with you." Jack's eyes had grown wide. "Do you really mean it?" He'd asked. Ennis nodded. "I do." He'd assured him. "I love you, Jack Twist. Will...will you marry me?" Jack had teared up and kissed Ennis right there infront of both the girls. "Yes!" He told him. "Yes I will marry you, Cowboy!"

So that's how he and Ennis had come to be engaged. After that Ennis had filed for a divorce from Alma and Jack had done the same with Lureen. Six months later, both divorces had been finalized and Jack and Ennis had taken their children to Lightning Flat, where they settled down on the Twist family ranch with Jack's mother, Annie. They'd built a new house so that they'd have enough room for all the kids, so now the old house was being rented out to one of Jack's cousins who'd just graduated from school and needed her own place. Jack's mother had moved in with Jack and Ennis to help out with the kids. At that time Junior had been five, Jenny was three and Bobby was almost two. Jack had brought up having kids together a few times, but he and Ennis had both agreed that they needed to get the little ones they had now out of diapers and off to school before they tried to take on any more kids.

But of course God had other plans, and a few weeks after Bobby had turned four, Jack had come down with the morning sickness. Four positive pregnancy tests and one Doctor visit later, there was no doubt in their minds that they were going to be receiving a little present from the stork. "Guess our little plan of waitin' till the kids were all in school ain't gonna happen, Cowboy." Jack had laughed while they drove home from his doctor's office. Ennis had just smiled and gave Jack a little peck on the cheek. "It don't matter none." He'd told him. "To tell ya the truth I was missin' havin' a baby crawlin' around the house." Jack had just smiled and rested his head on Ennis's shoulder. "Speakin' of the babies we've already got, how are we gonna tell 'em?" Ennis had just shrugged. "Figured we'd just come right out and say it." He'd told him. Jack had nodded in agreement and kissed Ennis's jaw line. "Yeah, alright." He'd whispered. "We'll just tell 'em and hope fer the best."

The kids had taken the news better than Jack and Ennis had thought that they would...Well all of them but Junior of course. Bobby and Jenny had jumped and cheered with joy when they were given the news, but Junior, instead of being happy and cheerful like the others, had pulled an angry look on her face, gotten up from the couch and walked off to her room. Jack had looked up at Ennis, terrified that Junior wasnt going to take to kindly to the idea of a new baby. "Don't worry, babe." Ennis had assured Jack. "She's just a little shocked is all. She'll be out here, smilin' and gigglin' like normal before ya know it." Jack had appreciated Ennis trying to make him feel better, but his little theory about Junior didn't seem to be right. Through the whole pregnancy, she'd become resentful to Jack, not wanting anything to do with him or the baby growing inside him. While Jenny and Bobby had helped pick out baby clothes, paint the nursery, open gifts at Jack's baby shower, and had always had their hands all over Jack's belly, trying to feel the baby kick, Junior had just kept to herself, not wanting to help with any of the shopping, painting, or the opening of all tee presents, and she certainly never wanted to feel the baby kick.

Junior's behavior was really hurting Jack. She'd always treated him like a daddy, but now it was like she had just decided to hate him. He'd cried over it a couple of times, and again Ennis had tried to get her to help out with some of the decorating and planning for the baby, but the little red headed seven year just wouldn't have any part of it. Though the truth was, Jack was starting to understand that Junior's behavior didn't have anything to do with him. He knew what was really bugging her. She was jealous of the baby. Why? He couldn't really guess, and it didn't hurt his feelings any less knowing that she felt this way, but until she came around he had ended up having to just deal with the fact that Junior was going to be this way. Sure it hurt that she didn't want to talk to him hardly anymore, and he wanted to cry whenever Junior made an angry face whenever anyone mentioned the baby, but it comforted him to hope that once the baby was here that Junior would come to her senses and accept her new sibling like the other children already had.

Jack was pulled from his daze when the front door opened up and Ennis stepped in, followed by the girls. "We're home!" Ennis said, smiling. "Jack!" Jenny shouted as she ran to hug him. Jack eased himself up from the couch just in time for Jenny to throw her arms around him in a big hug. "Hey baby girl." Jack greeted her, ruffling her hair and smiling. Junior came into the living room after Jenny, not even bothering to look at Jack. "Hey, Junior..." Jack tried. "Hi." Junior muttered quietly before heading back to her room, not even looking at Jack as she rushed past him. Jack winced slightly when he heard Junior's door slam shuts and he slowly turned to look at Ennis with an upset face. Ennis's temper got the better of him when he saw the tears welling up in Jack's eyes. This was the last straw. There was no reason for Junior to be treating Jack this way. "Jack, your mama's got supper on the stove." Ennis said as he walked into the living room and gave Jack a comforting hug and kiss. "Why don't you take the kids on into the kitchen to eat. I'll gonna go have a talk with Junior." Jack sniffled to hold back the tears and nodded. "Come on kids." Jack said as he took Bobby, and Jenny, who was still holding tightly to him, into the kitchen for supper. Ennis sighed and waited until they were all out of the living room before making his way down the hallway to Junior's bedroom. He knocked on her door and waited. "Who is it?" Junior asked from inside. "It's your Daddy." Ennis replied. "Open this door young lady, we need to have a little talk."

TBC


End file.
